Local networks often make use of a communication line, such as a communication bus, over which a set of nodes communicates. A driver module in a master node applies power to the line, the driver module being switched to produce step changes in the power in the line to transmit signals to receivers in remote slave nodes over the line. The switched power signal activates the multiplexed remote nodes connected to the line and the line also selectively transmits signals from the remote nodes back to a central processing unit.
Such a bus is used in automotive vehicles, for example, the bus comprising either a single line or a twisted pair of conductors in which the current flows, the close coupling between the pair of conductors reducing their sensitivity to electromagnetic interference (‘EMI’), that is to say reception of noise induced in the wires of the bus, and improving their electromagnetic compatibility (‘EMC’), that is to say the radiation of parasitic fields by the currents flowing in the wires of the bus; both are critical parameters, especially in automotive applications.
Historically, in automotive applications, functions such as door locks, seat positions, electric mirrors, and window operations have been controlled directly by electrical direct current delivered by wires and switches. Such functions may today be controlled by ECUs (Electronic Control Units) together with sensors and actuators in a multiplexed Controller Area Network (CAN). The Controller Area Network (CAN) standard (ISO 11898) allows data to be transmitted by switching a voltage, at a frequency of 250 kbauds to 1 Mbaud for example, to the multiplexed receiver modules over the twisted pair cable. The receiver modules may be actuators that perform a function, for example by generating mechanical power required, or sensors that respond to activation by making measurements and transmitting the results back to the ECU over the bus.
The CAN bus was designed to be used as a vehicle serial data bus, and satisfies the demands of real-time processing, reliable operation in a vehicle's EMI environment, is cost-effective, and provides a reasonable data bandwidth. However, connecting with the main body network directly via a CAN bus system can be expensive because of increased costs per node and because high overall network traffic can make management extremely difficult. To help reduce costs, the logical extension is to structure the network hierarchically.
A variant on the CAN standard is the LIN (Local Interconnect Network) sub-bus standard (see ISO 7498), which is an extension to the CAN bus, at lower speed and on a single wire bus, to provide connection to local network clusters. A LIN sub-bus system uses a single-wire implementation (enhanced ISO9141), which can significantly reduce manufacturing and component costs. Component costs are further reduced by self-synchronization, without crystal or ceramics resonator, in the slave node. The system is based on common Universal asynchronous receiver and transmitter serial communications interface (UART/SCI) hardware that is shared by most micro-controllers, for a more flexible, lower-cost silicon implementation.
It is often necessary to control accurately the shape of the leading and/or trailing edges of switched signals transmitted over the communication line. This is particularly the case where it is desired to minimise electromagnetic interference, by limiting the basic frequencies of electromagnetic emissions to certain acceptable frequency ranges and restricting the amplitudes of emissions of harmonics of the basic frequencies outside the acceptable range.
It is possible to generate signals to be transmitted with controlled shape by generating a step function current charging a capacitor to approximate the desired shape of the voltage signal, as shown in FIG. 1. Such a generator is readily accommodated in an integrated circuit using digital techniques. However, the discontinuous changes in the charging current produce large rates of change of the voltage across the capacitor and applied to the communication line, which are a source of EMI harmonics. Also, the capacitor stage has high impedance, with correspondingly low current produced by this stage, so that several follower stages are needed and its components are subjected to the full voltage swings across the capacitor, so that they need to withstand such relatively high voltages.
It is possible to generate signals to be transmitted with controlled shape by analogue circuits, such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,530,388, 6,072,340 and 6,259,303, for example. However, the circuits described in these specifications do not give an optimal compromise between the requirements of low EMI and low circuit complexity, especially in the context of an integrated circuit implementation.